Govt to set up centralised communication monitoring system

New Delhi: The government on Wednesday said it will set up a centralised monitoring system for lawful interception of telephone and internet services and has allocated Rs 400 crore for the project.

"Government has decided to set up the centralised monitoring system (CMS) for lawful interception and monitoring of telephone and internet services," Minister of State for Communications and IT Milind Deora said in a written reply to Lok Sabha.

The total fund allocation for setting up CMS is Rs 400 crore and so far an expenditure incurred on research and development is Rs 76.86 crore and Rs 4.25 crore on roll out of the project, Deora added.

"The envisaged salient features of CMS include direct electronic provisioning of target number by a government agency without any manual intervention from telecom service providers on a secured network, thus enhancing the secrecy level and quick provision of target," he said.

CMS will have central and regional database which will help central and state level law enforcement agencies in interception and monitoring. Analysis of call data records will help in establishing linkage between anti-national and anti-social elements.

"The development work of the system is largely completed. Pilot project has been completed by September 30, 2011 at Delhi under which C-DOT has installed two ISF servers, one each for MTNL and Tata Communications and interception services have been integrated and tested successfully for these two operators," Deora said.

Further, the system has been installed and integrated in Delhi circle connecting six telecom operators and one operator in Haryana circle, he added.

"The CMS has also been integrated with mobile number portability operators for pan-India and equipment has been ordered for installation of system in six more licenced service areas," Deora said.